Just in case you're wondering I haven't abandoned my blog. I'm just catching up on things having got back late Sat night from a holiday in Menorca. It was so hot you had to be near a pool or by the sea to cool down, fantastic! There was a tiny beach in a cove near where I stayed and it was full of fish which loved bread, just wish I had a rod with me! Seems I the last minute choice I made to go abroad was a good one as from what I have heard the weather back in the UK last week was not good.
As I had no chance to fish a match I decided to walk the bank at Newbridge for a few hours and see if I could pick up some tips. The river was quite clear and with little flow, so obviously more rain needed in the weather forecast! I arrived at the first angler 15 mins after the start, I soon found out that only 20 odd anglers had turned up (many others fishing bank holiday weekend festivals) and Kev Dicks had spread them far and wide! There were anglers at Rotork, from the little field to peg 36, and then more down in the trees. I walked the bit from Rotork to peg 36 but I think I would have seen more action at the trees as this was where the winner came from last week. As per usual all anglers had balled it to start with and most enjoyed fish for the first hour, Roach but as many if not more perch were caught. Funny how the perch on the river will happily feed over groundbait, they seem to muscle out the roach.
4lb was a good weight after 1.5 hours from Newbridge, but most were now struggling. Up at Rotork most anglers were saying they had started well but half way through were thrashing for bleak, that is except for the downstream end peg where he got to 3.5 hours on roach before they finally went. Bathamptons Nathan Hawke was being watched by his girlfriend (or maybe it was just a passer by he pulled) although she seemed more interested in a magazine. On the next peg was Nathans team mate Lee Trivett and he was in full bleaking mode when I arrived. I couldn't help feeling that Lee reminded me of a garden gnome with dreadlocks! I could take no more of the bleak bashing and went back to the little field, but of the three anglers here only one was catching now (about an hour to go) and this was... yep bleak. The guy on peg 10 was just reballing it as I got to him, but it didn't work!
By now the 18C temperature was getting to me after a week of 30C+ and feeling cold I decided to go home. Before I did I rang Darren Gillman who I'd found out was drawn in the trees, he was on around 7 to 8lb he said, and as he was in between casts I left him alone. Darren had a pike in his net (which don't count) and told me he had lost his last 4 fish to pike! This was a common a problem with more people having pike trouble than not. With more perch being caught than roach it seems Newbridge is a bit of a predator water at present, and with so many bleak present they've plenty to keep them happy! No bream or skimmers had been caught on the stretches I walked. HOWEVER..... I found out later that Kev Dicks won the match with 18lb and he had 2 bream for 10lb (did he already have them when I saw him, hmmm). Skimmers were caught in the trees but not by all, 17lb came from down there and a few more double figure weights.
Superleague is next weekend and as I said earlier I hope we get some decent rain before this match.
I just read on Tony Rixons blog that he seems to have had an individual question his integrity over his match monies. As far as I'm concerned Tony is clean as a whistle, he can't spell but I know he can count money. Anyway, he's big enough and ugly enough to stand up for himself so I'll say no more. I told Tony and Dean before they went boat fishing that it was going to be a Severn Bore (pun intended) but they didn't believe me!
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